Silviculture: Sustainable Forestry

We support responsible forest stewardship practices and management, sourcing much of our wood from vendors that are FSC-certified (Forest Stewardship Council-certified). The Forest Stewardship Council is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organization founded in 1993 by a diverse group of representatives from environmental and conservation groups, the timber industry, the forestry profession, indigenous peoples' organizations, community forestry groups and forest product certification organizations from 25 countries.

Not only have we purchased the wood used in the hallway and front room floor from the Sustainable Woods Cooperative (SWC), but Inn Serendipity has joined the nation's first sustainable woods cooperative. Installation of the hardwood floor was completed in 2001.

About Sustainable Woods Cooperative: Community-based Sustainable Forestry and Marketing of Certified Woods Products

The Sustainable Woods Cooperative (SWC) is a forest management and value-added wood processing and marketing cooperative located in Lone Rock in southwestern Wisconsin. These private landowners, who are member - owners of the cooperative, are designing a new forest management model by managing their woodlots under SmartWood certified sustainable forest management plans. Sustainable forest management accounts for the entire ecosystem in the forest.The goal as a member-owned cooperative is to improve the quality of local woodlots by operating a business that returns profits from manufacturing members' logs back to our members to assist them in their stewardship efforts. All cooperative members will have forest management plans certified by SmartWood to meet Forest Stewardship Council sustainable forest management standards.

The Sustainable Woods Cooperative is the first business of its kind in the nation combining certified sustainable forest management by its owner-members and certified chain of custody sales of wood products from members' forests. SWC manufactures quality certified hardwood products such as kiln-dried lumber, wood flooring, siding and trim. The chain of custody is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (COC#282), assuring customers that all products marketed come from sustainably managed forests. The SWC is empowering landowners in southwestern Wisconsin, like Inn Serendipity, to manage their forests by this new economic and forest management system.

Sustainable Woods Cooperative Mission
The Sustainable Woods Cooperative mission is to maximize the long-term aesthetic, ecological, and economic benefits from area forests by means of environmentally responsible practices, landowner and consumer education, and local manufacturing of value-added Forest Stewardship Council-certified wood products.

SWC believes that:* healthy forests and natural lands are essential to the health of the planet and all of its resident species, and that landowners and forest managers have both the opportunity and the responsibility to nurture and maintain these lands for future generations.

* "Sustainable Forestry" must protect and restore the biological diversity of our woodlands, preserve air and water quality, and stay within the ecological carrying-capacity of the land.

* Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and SmartWood Certification standards provide sound guidance to landowners, foresters, and loggers working to protect and improve the long-term health of our woodlands.

* managing appropriate "non-tree" species enhances the aesthetic, ecological, and recreational value of our woods.

* a local forestry cooperative committed to educating landowners about sustainable forestry practices is the most effective means of improving privately owned woodlands and restoring them to health and productivity.

* a local forestry cooperative strengthens the local economy by maximizing the economic return to the landowner from his or her forest resources.

Sustainable Woods Cooperative Goals
1. Provide forest management services and resources using Forest Stewardship Council (SmartWood) sustainable management guidelines to enhance the ecological value of land. These services would include reforestation, prairie and oak savanna restoration, timber stand improvement, and harvesting.

2. Act as a processing and marketing agent to get a fair return to landowners of wood through value-added processing and marketing of wood products and marketing of non-tree species of members' woods.

3. Provide education to members regarding such issues as sustainable forestry management, ecological enhancement, and non-wood forest products.

4. Provide education to customers and wood use decision makers on sustainable forestry management and establish sustainable business practices with customers.


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Inn Serendipity Woods
S 3580 St. Patricks Road
Hillsboro, Wisconsin

For reservations, call or write to:
Inn Serendipity B & B
7843 County P
Browntown WI 53522
Tel: 608-329-7056
Fax: 608-329-7057
E-mail: info@innserendipity.com
Website: www.innserendipity.com


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